Andreas Schelfhout (1787-1870), Figures on the ice near a windmill, a town in the distance, oil on panel, 30x41 cm, Exhibited:-The Hague, Kunsthandel Pieter A. Scheen, `Summer exhibition`, 1976, no. 27. Literature:-Willem Laanstra, `Andreas Schelfhout 1787-1870`, Amsterdam 1995, ill. p. 147, no. WO 30-2. Provenance:-Auction, Christie`s, London, 14 June 1974, lot 254.-Auction, Christie`s, Laren, 13 June 1975, lot 276.-With Kunsthandel Pieter A. Scheen, The Hague, 1976, where acquired by the family of the present owners. Lots 56-83: A Distinguished Collection, signed `A. Schelfhout f` (lower left), The Claude Lorrain of winter scenes The name Schelfhout can almost be considered a synonym for “winter landscape”, and with this in mind, it is remarkable that he was initially reluctant to send in his winter scenes for the yearly Exhibition of Living Masters. This was probably not because he lacked confidence in his own skills, but because winter scenes were just not that popular at the time, and seen chiefly as just obligatory companions to summer pieces. However, Schelfhout’s winter scenes were of such high quality that they were soon earning much appreciation, both in the Netherlands and abroad. When Schelfhout realized the growing popularity of his winter scenes, he gradually increased his focus on this particular subject matter. He might even be considered to be the one who introduced a whole new speciality and, with this, a new important market. Although Schelfhout never confined himself completely to the genre - his considerable output also contains, for instance, high quality landscapes, forest scenes, and dune landscapes - he nevertheless became the epitome of the nineteenth century winter landscape painter. His contemporary art critics even provided him with the pet name “the Claude Lorrain of winter scenes.” Being a true nineteenth century romantic artist, and thus an admirer of the Golden Age painters, we see Schelfhout’s inspiration stemming from Meindert Hobbema, Jacob van Ruisdael and Jan van Goyen, as far as composition is concerned. For subject matter, Hendrick Avercamp was influential. However, Schelfhout stayed clear from downright imitation and made every single painting very much his own. To illustrate this: Avercamp puts more emphasis on the figures than on the surrounding scene, whereas Schelfhout makes his figures subordinate to the grandeur of the landscape. Andreas Schelfhout would live long enough to establish a rich legacy, both with his own outstanding oeuvre and through his many students, among whom Charles Leickert, Johan Barthold Jongkind and Wijnand Nuyen, all remarkable artists in their own right. His extraordinary gift for snow and ice scenes in which picturesque skaters and windmills are rendered with great technical skill in naturalistic colours, make his winter scenes still the most sought after of his subjects. But what exactly is Schelfhout’s secret? Why, when looking at his winter scenes, do we immediately want to put on our skates and join the crowd on the frozen river? The answer lies both in Schelfhout’s exceptional mastery of the brush, and in his well-developed sense of composition and atmosphere. It is all there in the present lot: Via the deep black reflecting ice in the foreground, the eye is drawn towards the white and blueish background where the fun is. A couple in the foreground is happily doing their tour, passing the labourers who are filling up the horse-cart with bags. The whole scene is suggestive of a situation in which ‘all is well’. Yes, it is winter and, yes, it is cold, but, so the prominent position of the solid windmill tells us, at least normal life continues. Labourers get on with their job, and we even have spare time to spend some leisurely hours skating. There might be some cracks, but have no fear, the ice is thick and solid enough, it can even hold a horse and cart. No one is falling down, and the koek-en-zopie tent (suggested by a tiny fresh white stroke of the brush) is waiting with hot drinks. In this time of global warming it is hard to imagine that Schelfhout lived in the last phase of what is often called the small ice age, a time with gruelling cold winters. By offering his comforting, idealistic winter scenes Schelfhout answered to the need of his buyers to counterbalance the often hard reality of these long and cold Dutch winters. Or, as an art critic described it in 1842: “Alleen zoo als Schelfhout den Winter voorstelt, in het witte gewaad en met de bonte menigte van schaatsenrijders, vinden wij er iets aanlokkelijks in …” (“And only by the way Schelfhout renders Winter, in its white cloak and with the colourful crowd of ice skaters, do we find it a bit more attractive…”). Especially in the reality of a harsh cold winter, so he explains, do we need these beautiful and uplifting landscapes, to offer solace, and an outlook on a better future. And who would be better to supply the public with just that than Schelfhout? Schelfhout has materialized the very heart of Dutch winter, and as such winters become rare, it might be a good idea to secure one. This one will not melt. Sources:-Willem Laanstra, ‘Andreas Schelfhout: 1787-1870’, Amsterdam 1995.-Michiel Plomp, ‘Van Jacob van Strij tot Jan Mankes, Het Winterlandschap in de Nederlandse Kunst van de negentiende eeuw’, in: ‘Echte Winters: Het winterlandschap in de negentiende eeuw’, Haarlem 2016.-Kunstkronijk 1842, p. 43.